Mineral phase
IMA name
Magnesite
Secondary names
Magnesium carbonate; Mg carbonate
IMA Code
Mgs
CAS number
39409-82-0
Type
Class
non-silicate mineral
Compound type
carbonate
Chemical composition
Formula
$MgCO_3$
Chemical formula
MgCO3
Elemental formula
(Mg2+) C O (O-)2
Isotope mixture type
terrestrial abundance
  Formula Name Family Number min-max Isotope mole fraction State Relevance
$Mg^{2+}$ Magnesium(II) cation element 1 constituent cation main
$(CO_3)^{2-}$ Carbonate anion chemical function 1 anionic radical main
Chemical functions
  Function Number
$(CO_3)^{2-}$ 1
Chemical bonds
  Bond Number
$\cdot Mg^{2+} \cdot O^{-}-$ 2
$\dddot - \dddot - C \dddot - O^{-2/3}$ 3
Oxides
Formula $MgO$ $CO_{2}$
Mass fraction (%) 47.8 52.2

Strunz

Class
carbonates - nitrates (05)
Division
carbonates without additional anions, without H2O (05.A)
Family
Alkali-earth (and other M2+) carbonates (05.AB)
Code
05.AB.05

Dana

Major class
carbonates, nitrates, borates (V)
Class
anhydrous carbonates (14)
Type
with simple formula A+CO3 (14.01)
Group
Calcite group (Trigonal: R-3c) (14.01.01)
Code
14.01.01.02
Phase type
crystalline
Crystal system
trigonal
Crystal class
ditrigonal-scalenohedral
Crystal class symbol
-3m (D3d)
Crystal spacegroup
R-3c
Molar mass
84.31 $g/mol$
Density
3.01 $g/cm^3$
State NTP
solid
Refringence type
uniaxial
Refringence sign
negative
Birefringence
0.191
Refraction index $n_o$ (w)
1.700
Refraction index $n_e$ (e)
1.509
Dispersion V
very strong
Pure color
colorless
Color
colorless, white, yellow, brown
Diaphaneity
transparent to translucent
Luster
vitreous
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